Picture of the Day: Redneck Heaven

There's an interesting underlying (deeply underlying) point to be drawn from the author's comment about the "fighter pilots" and their keg-of-beer. It invokes the "fighter-pilot-ethos". That is -- though it was not engaged in this little race, which was just-for-sport -- an ethos of almost super-human courage and "reckless aggressiveness" in engaging the enemy. And a certain "heroic" style in so doing. All of which is well-founded, and should be, without constraint, well-celebrated. My point is not to question that ethos -- not at all, I would, along with the author, celebrate it. My point is that that ethos rides on the back of a very sophisticated, highly developed set of scientific/technological developments. The ethos could be the same, but if it rode on the back of a donkey, almost any competitor would leave it in the dust -- or defeat it in combat. For the combat/military superiority to which we aspire -- and rightly so! -- we need both a "cool-headed" rational scientific/technological superiority, which is delivered by non-warrior geeks who know math/science/engineering, and a warrior ethos, as exemplified in the iconical fighter-pilot. Superiority lies in having both. Not a novel idea -- surely every serious military analyst appreciates it. Just a reminder: the pedestrians who actually design/manufacture advanced fighter planes (along with tanks, aircraft carriers, submarines (oh, how I'm thankful for those guys, as my son has completed two deployments as an officer on a nuclear sub!), etc., etc -- those pedestrians are not pedestrians at all! They are -- well, not "heros" in the sense of confronting intense personal danger, as do fighter pilots -- but, rather, "indispensables". I'm reminded of a comment by a high-ranking Japanese official at the end of WWII: something like (I paraphrase): "We had exceptional fighting spirit, but they had exceptional fire-power." That is, "they" (us) had exceptional technology, combined with the organizational skill to employ it effectively, and the fighting ethos to employ it "heroically". All are required: the technology, the organization, the heroic ethos. Ok, you can, from a human perspective, celebrate first and foremost the heroic dimension. It is the most "human" of that trilogy. But victory requires all three. Not that we should equally celebrate all three. Among them, the "heroic" really does deserve primary celebration. It is awe-inspiring. Whereas "organization" and "technology" inspire, well, almost nothing, emotionally. But they are also indispensable to success. Not that we should celebrate them, emotionally, on the same plane as heroism. But we should certainly recognize them, rationally, as co-equal partners in victory.

John - no, I don't think you could call it Redneck Heaven per se. Not racing a Jag race car. Now get 800 Hp of a NASCAR beast out there and you would be set...

Ben - I wish your son the best of luck. He is in the finest, most unsung fighting force in the world. Hopefully, he is on a 688I or newer boat (both mine were)...

That is just too cool. They need to do this at each Air Show around the country.

So, who won?

I agree with bullnav, no self respecting redneck would be caught near a Jag, even if they are owned by Ford........

Hopefully, not for too much longer...

cuttin' loose the dead weight ehhh.....

Ben, one of the main reasons that the US military can kick the beejeezus out of any other armed force is because they have unsurpassed logistical capabilities. Mundane operations such as acquisitioning, warehousing, distribution and transportation of goods and personnel can make a MASSIVE difference in the conduct of a war. So your point is very true, the rear echelon personnel, whether they be clerks, mechanics, scientists or technicians, are every bit as important as the front line personnel.

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